Steve: Recovery Gave Me Back My Family

Steve

A man shares his story of recovering from substance use and turning his life around.

In 2008, my parents planned to take the entire family on a cruise to celebrate their 50th anniversary. I realized the celebration was impossible for me to even think about because of the way my life was going. That moment, January 31, 2008, is when I first started onto the path of recovery. Help from other people living in long-term recovery before and even during the cruise made it amazing.

Our family business was failing prior to 2008. With new determination, the business began to get on its feet. Relationships with everyone in my family started to get better. My mom said, “I’m so happy to get my little boy back.” The man my wife fell in love with returned. Our children received a much-needed father. Daddy and daughter dances and other events for my children were precious. I researched and found more than 20 new cousins from all over the world whom I’m getting to know for the first time! The school got an eager “Bingo Night” entertainer. Former classmates asked me to chair our 25th reunion.

People from a focus group contacted my wife to arrange a surprise. Two weeks later, a knock on my door had an entire production team on the other side ready to shoot me in a TV commercial, which aired nationally for more than six months. Seeing that commercial each time was much more than a longtime dream come true because it had my son in it with me.

My life would have been so very different today if not for accepting recovery!

Recovery Month promotes the societal benefits of prevention, treatment, and recovery for mental and substance use disorders, celebrates people in recovery, lauds the contributions of treatment and service providers, and promotes the message that recovery in all its forms is possible. Recovery Month spreads the positive message that behavioral health is essential to overall health, that prevention works, treatment is effective and people can and do recover.